Bay City Baptist Church, Green Bay, WI

Ernest Hemingway told this story about Paco. A father came to Madrid, which is full of boys named Paco, and inserted an advertisement in the personal columns of a local newspaper offering: PACO MEET ME AT HOTEL MONTANA NOON TUESDAY ALL IS FORGIVEN PAPA. According to the story, a squadron of the civil guard had to be called out to disperse the eight hundred young men who answered the ad. Isn’t it true that all of us need to be forgiven? This pamphlet will show you how you can be forgiven for every wrong, offense, and sin which you have ever committed. Read on.

Forgiveness is God’s answer to the problem of guilt. Guilt is an interesting reality. Everybody has experienced it. It is an unpleasant blend of emotions and reason which tells us that something is wrong - wrong with us. Some guilt is caused by conditioning. We learn to feel guilty when we violate the taboos of the culture in which we were reared, when we are blamed for someone else’s failure, when we break a man-made religious rule, or when we fail to reach an objective which we have set for ourselves.

Other guilt is caused by the fact that we have done wrong. Those guilty feelings demonstrate that we, as humans, are made in the image of God, and have a moral nature. God is the One who defines what sin is. He has done so in the Bible, but even if people are unfamiliar with the Bible, God’s Holy Spirit works in their consciences to convince them that they are guilty when they have done something wrong.

"For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not." Ecclesiastes 7:20

"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;" Romans 3:23

There are natural consequences when we sin. A lie may lead to embarrassment. Anger may lead to regret. Promiscuity may lead to disease.

Besides those, there is a sentence which God hands down for sin. God is just, and He is holy. He would be neither just nor holy if He allowed sin and wrong to go unpunished.

"For the wages of sin is death. . . " Romans 6:23a

Though our sentence includes physical death, it is not limited to that. The Apostle John relates in the Bible,

"And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God: and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works ... This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." Revelation 20:12, 14b, 15

Forgiveness ultimately has to come from God. He is the Creator, Sustainer and Judge of all. God is loving, and He is not willing that any should be condemned. However, since God is also just and holy, before He could forgive us, His justice had to be satisfied. He designed a way to satisfy both His love and His justice by sending His Son for us. Jesus Christ paid the penalty for our sins with His blood, dying on the cross in our place.

"But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

"Who His own self (Jesus Christ) bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed." I Peter 2:24

God does not offer His forgiveness to us on the basis of our good works or church membership. He provides forgiveness and eternal life to us as a gift.

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16

". . . but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Roman 6:23b

Anyone who is willing to turn from his sin and receive Jesus Christ as his personal Savior by faith is set free from the penalty of sin and the burden of his guilt. He is born into God’s family. Saving faith requires that we ask for the salvation which God has provided. Forgiveness comes when we ask by faith for the salvation which God has provided.

"But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name." John 1:12

"That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved . . . For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Romans 10:9, 13

The death, burial, and resurrection of Christ insure the availability of forgiveness to all, but your faith is necessary to claim the reality of forgiveness.

Your Response
If you see your need to trust Christ and would like to receive God’s gift of forgiveness and eternal life, you may - right now - by calling on Him. Many who have trusted Christ have prayed a prayer similar to this. (If you can mean this sincerely, pray):

Dear God,
I confess that I am a sinner and need your forgiveness. I believe that Jesus Christ died for my sins and rose again. I now trust only in Christ to save me and to take me to heaven. Amen.

If you have sincerely prayed that prayer, please sign your name and write the date below. You may want to save this pamphlet as a reminder of the most important decision you have ever made.

If you have made a decision to trust Christ as your Savior, write to the address below to receive free literature to help you in your new relationship with Christ.

Written by one of our missionaries, Jim Hoffman

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